Teammates for four seasons and now “enemies” for one, Pittsburgh Steelers LB Patrick Queen knows how Baltimore Ravens’ QB Lamar Jackson thinks. And much like Ralphie from A Christmas Story, he just says fudge it.
Like Ralphie, Queen didn’t actually say fudge. During a post-practice interview with the media via 93.7 The Fan, Queen shared a window into how Jackson thinks, especially when everything is on the line.
Winning is all that matters to Baltimore this weekend. If it can’t knock off Pittsburgh, the Steelers will take home the division for the first time since 2020.
Facing criticism following the Ravens’ own loss to the Eagles, Jackson was determined to play his style of football, focusing less on being a perfect passer and utilizing his legs in open grass. After the team’s Week 14 bye, they came out and rolled the New York Giants in a 35-14 victory. Jackson threw more touchdown passes (five) than he did incompletions (four) and in the fourth quarter, he was pulled and rested for the remainder of the game. It makes the Ravens’ short week more manageable, the home team two weeks removed from a bye and playing only around 75 percent of a game on Sunday. On the other end, Pittsburgh was worn down by Philadelphia and will have to travel for back-to-back weeks.
Still, if there’s a team that has had Jackson’s number, it’s the Steelers. His career numbers against Pittsburgh are worse than any other team, five touchdowns to eight interceptions and a sub-60-percent completion rate. In the teams’ Week 11 meeting, Jackson completed less than half his passes and was held to 207 passing yards in his worst game of the season.
Queen and Pittsburgh’s defense will be called upon again to come up large. Even with their success, the Steelers will have their hands full managing all of the Ravens’ talent at the skill positions. But a win over Baltimore would arguably be their biggest of the season and with the division on the line, obviously their most important. Make Lamar say “Fudge” – but the other “F” word – and the Steelers will wear AFC North Champions hats and T-shirts on the flight back to Pittsburgh.
